The Pressure to Save the World

Our Everly Mag Writing Leaders were asked the question, what do you think is the biggest pressure teens your age are facing today? We wanted to know what different types of pressure different teens might face and how we can all help each other with relieving some of this pressure.

We are all unfathomably lucky to exist in this time period. Compared to our predecessors, we, as Millennials and Gen Zs, have access to the fruits of unprecedented technological inventions and social revolutions, which has in turn modified our struggles and generally, made our lives easier. If we lived the same lifestyle we did now, but in a time period around 100 years ago, it would probably acquire 10 or even 20 servants to be able to satisfy our demands.

However, given the prerogatives available to teenagers, we also need to acknowledge the dilemmas that arise, which, much like the advancements of this century, are unprecedented and impact our lives in unimaginable ways. Imminent crises that our generation is put up against continue to implicitly contribute to the pressures teens face today, in ways that seem impossible to stand up against.

Image: Vlad Tchompalov via Unsplash

The global temperature has ballooned uncontrollably in the past decade, handfuls of species are becoming extinct because of their now-depleted ecosystems, the scarcity of natural resources has manifested itself in the form of fatal droughts, natural disasters have become frighteningly frequent and increasingly disastrous, and polluting human behaviours is only expediting this process.

Scientists say that, if effective, tangible action isn’t taken to curtail this damage in the next decade or so, the results would be irreversible, and we will be permanently stuck on the destructive path we are currently on. In other words: if millennials and Gen Z’s don’t save the earth, we are all doomed. It’s tremendously troubling to see the ominous reports about ice caps melting and coral reefs dying and greenhouse gases killing populations popping up on our social media timelines, and teens are forced to live their lives with the constant threat of environmental Armageddon looming over their adolescent, fear-filled heads.

When my English class did a poem project on what the foreseeable future looked like, the amount of metaphors and hyperboles I heard about toxic air and deforestation was disconcerting, and it seemed as if the future for us teens is undoubtedly riddled with insurmountable obstacles and utter depletion of the natural world. The worst part is, we feel powerless over this unstably escalating situation. The greedy corporate heads and ignorant government officials don’t seem to be acting in our favour, and while we do have some extent of control over our environmental behaviour, these efforts are dwarfed by the exploitative powers of the government, corporates and their overly consumptive agendas, which always calls for more factories, more pollution, more profits. So we continue on with our lives, constantly fearing for our future, fearing that one day when we turn on the faucet no water will come out, fearing that one day our communities will be relentlessly flooded or wiped out by hurricanes, fearing that one day, the environment that has sustained us for all our lives will no longer be in tact, and we will have been responsible. This pressure to generate immediate and efficacious reform to our industries and lifestyles has plagued the thoughts of most teenagers I know, myself included, and eradicated all chances of hope for the future.

Image: Karsten Wurth via Unsplash

However, it’s never too late, especially not now, while we are at the brink of an environmental revolution. When people are starting the realize the utmost urgency and gravity of the issue at hand, when new technology is constantly being invented to combat climate change, when recycling programs and veganism is on the rise. This is a time for us to take action, to save the world in whichever way we can. To initiate programs and make pacts and spread the message.

We are now decision-makers, whether we like it or not, we make the decision to choose our destiny, and the destiny of our successors. We choose whether or not the earth will remain beautiful and livable, and that starts with choosing whether or not we join the movement. It also starts with adults taking us seriously when we tell them that change needs to happen now, before it’s too late. Only by counteracting this pressure with some action of our own can we actually alleviate it, and make the future of this planet brighter, more hopeful, and one worth working towards. Wish us luck! We’ll need it.

Is the state of our environment something that worries you? Comment below!